Rhody men and women's track team compete at New Balance Invitational

02/11/09 - The University of Rhode Island men's and women's track and field teams wrapped up a two-day competition at the New Balance Invitational this past weekend.Select runners, throwers and jumpers from schools all over the country took part in the meet that was held at the Armory Track and Field Center in New York.

"The competition was really big," freshman Kalyn Sheehan said. "It was good to be amidst the best in the country."

Sophomore David Kennedy recorded a time of 21.94 seconds in the 200-meter dash, finishing in 18th place and missing qualification for the finals by .33 seconds. Kennedy also competed in the 500-meter dash championship, finishing in 17th place with a time of 1:05.55.

"My 500 on Friday wasn't good at all," Kennedy said. "Saturday's race [200-meter dash] was a lot better."

Junior Tyler Adams threw a season-best 50-foot, 2-inch throw in the championship division of the shot put. The throw qualified Adams to compete in the New England Championships.

Junior Michael Elliot competed in the consolation division of the high jump and finished second with a leap of 6 feet 8 inches. Behind him was fellow teammate and junior Rob Damon, who finished fourth with a leap of 6 feet, 4 inches.

In the pole vault, senior John Carstensen placed eighth and qualified for the Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America Championship with his performance of 15 feet, 9 inches.

The 4x400 team recorded its fastest time of the season, finishing fifth at a time of 3:18.77.

"The 4x4 team ran really well," Kennedy said. "It was a strong race. We switched the order up and it worked."

For the women's team, junior Shayna Daugherty leapt 5 feet, 6.5 inches en route to finishing fourth in the college division of the high jump. Also competing in the event was senior Jackie Chiodo, who tied for fifth in the consolation division, jumping 5 feet, 3.75 inches.

Sheehan ran in the 400-meter dash, posting a time of 57.49 seconds. With her performance, Sheehan has been named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week for the second consecutive week.

"With the A-10's coming up, it's really encouraging to get Rookie of the Week two weeks in a row," Sheehan said.

In the 60-meter hurdles, sophomore Najila Singleton clocked a time of 8.89 seconds for the Rams.

The 4x400 team, consisting of Daugherty, Sheehan, sophomore Najla Singleton-McKinnon and senior Ashley Robinson, finished seventh in the consolation division, running a season-best 3:49.35.

"The 4x4 team did very well," Sheehan said. "We took around eight seconds off our time."

Both the men and women's teams return to action Feb. 13. The men's team is taking place in the Armory Winter Games in New York City. The women's team will be competing in the Valentine's Classic in Boston.

"The competition will be tough this weekend," Kennedy said. "It will be nice running on a good track.